29 March 2014

wine tasting dinner: a bottle of red, a bottle of white

Welcome back! It's been a full week since I last posted, but this is a long one to redeem myself. Last month, the Sailor and I hosted an at-home wine tasting party. We won the tasting party at an auction back in the summer and finally put the event together this winter. If you've ever peeked at our wine rack or if you recall our experience at the Thirsty Owl, a local tasting room, you know we're not exactly connoisseurs. So it took us a bit of time to connect with the "wine expert" and then to plan the night. We went back and forth on a theme or region and whether we would do a sit down dinner or tasting plates to go with the wine. And then we finally devised a plan for a tasting menu.

(Yep, it's long. For those who are interested in the wines only, scroll down. The list of wines, where to buy, review and prices are all the way at the bottom of the post.)I don't know anyone who studies cookbooks like the Sailor. He reads; he compares recipes; he makes notes. Cookbooks are like textbooks to him. Me...I just like to eat. Not this time though. While I didn't exactly put the menu together, the Sailor consulted with me on the six courses he developed. He was probably just being considerate, but he sure did make me feel like I had an important role...in addition to playing hostess and putting together all of the cutesy party-prep stuff I am somewhat capable of doing.

The inspiration or 'theme' for the dinner? Somewhere in our worldly travels, we've tried a number of wines from Spain and Argentina that we rated "good." In Wine Spectator speak, they'd probably characterize the wines as complex, earthy or balanced. So, when speaking with the "wine expert," we referenced a few "good" vintages that we've enjoyed and told him to select wines to compliment the menu, which the Sailor and I planned using Everyday Italian, Secrets of the Best Chefs, Made in Spain and Italian Grill.

I wish that I had taken more photos (story of my life), because every course really was delicious and looked like photo from a cooking magazine. And despite all of us feasting like kings that night, we had plenty of left-overs to enjoy for days.

The highlight of this course was the duck prosciutto, which the Sailor prepared using a method from Michael Ruhlman's Charcuterie cookbook. More on Ruhlman. Ruhlman sums up the technique, "Pack one duck breast in kosher salt, cover and refrigerate 24 hours. Remove from salt, rinse it, dry it, wrap in cheesecloth and hang for a week or so. A general rule is dry-cured products are done when they lose 30% of their weight." And that's exactly what the Sailor did- If you have a humidity meter and kitchen scale, give it a whirl. Serve it on slices of thin baguette with a little mustard...Mmmm.

This course included my favorite white wine and second favorite wine overall that we tasted during the evening. The Ossian has apricot, almond, and toffee notes, making it sweet, but it also has a bit of spice and citrus.

Aged in American cask for 36 months, it has a
bucolic, natural bouquet of bright red cherries, balsamic, mint and a touch
of dried honey all with superb delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with
wonderful delineation and supple, lithe tannins. The acidity is very well
judged and it leads to a pert, tense finish of bitter cherry, loganberry and
licorice.- Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

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About Me

I always thought I would have everything all figured out by the time I turned thirty. The truth is, I'm just starting to really understand life. Join me as I find the extraordinary in the ordinary of everyday life.